UAE Royal Sheikh Gruesomely Assaults Man

Anatomy of a Torture Tape: UAE Royal Sheikh Gruesomely Assaults Man

This torture tape smuggled out of the United Arab Emirates shows a member of the country's royal family, Sheikh Issa bin Zayed al Nahyan, mercilessly torturing a man with whips, electric cattle prods and wooden planks with protruding nails. Here, the Sheikh begins by stuffing sand down the man's mouth, as a police officer restrains the victim.

ABC News

Anatomy of a Torture Tape: UAE Royal Sheikh Gruesomely Assaults Man

This torture tape smuggled out of the United Arab Emirates shows a member of the country's royal family, Sheikh Issa bin Zayed al Nahyan, mercilessly torturing a man with whips, electric cattle prods and wooden planks with protruding nails. Here, the Sheikh begins by stuffing sand down the man's mouth, as a police officer restrains the victim.

ABC News

Anatomy of a Torture Tape: UAE Royal Sheikh Gruesomely Assaults Man

Here, Sheikh Mohammed visits President Bush at Camp David in June, 2008.

ABC News

Anatomy of a Torture Tape: UAE Royal Sheikh Gruesomely Assaults Man

The 45-minute long tape was smuggled out of the country by Bassam Nabulsi, of Houston, Texas, a former business associate of Sheikh Issa. Nabulsi is now suing the Sheikh in federal court in Houston, alleging he also was tortured by UAE police when he refused to turn over the videos to the Sheikh following their falling out.

ABC News

Anatomy of a Torture Tape: UAE Royal Sheikh Gruesomely Assaults Man

Sheikh Issa, shown here (left) with Nabulsi (right), has an attorney in Houston who told ABC News "the tape is the tape." In a separate letter to ABC News, attorney Daryl Bristow, who represented George W. Bush in the Florida recount case in 2000, wrote, "You may be assured that in due course the one-sided "story" being told to ABC by the Nabulsi's and their lawyers will be completely addressed and the Nabulsi's will be discredited."

ABC News

Anatomy of a Torture Tape: UAE Royal Sheikh Gruesomely Assaults Man

Human Rights Watch's Sarah Leah Whitson said she has never seen such a graphic tape with the torturer flaunting his acts. "It's absolutely revolting and, I must say, I find it a great shame," she said.

ABC News

Anatomy of a Torture Tape: UAE Royal Sheikh Gruesomely Assaults Man

The co-chairman of the House Human Rights Commission, Rep. James McGovern (D-MA), said the existence of the tape requires the U.S. to take action. "The United Arab Emirates needs to fix this problem. This guy should be thrown in jail, he should be locked up. This guy is a sadist, he is mentally deranged, he is a sicko. The fact that he's getting protection just because he happens to be in a family that's well connected is unacceptable," McGovern told ABC News.